Do You Need a Permit to Drill a Water Well in Parker County?

Water Well Drilling Weatherford files district paperwork for new wells across Parker County, and the Parker County water well permit is really a registration with the Upper Trinity Groundwater Conservation District. The district covers Parker, Hood, Wise and Montague counties, and its office is on West Highway 199 in Springtown (817-523-5200).

What’s required today

For a new household well, the district currently requires:

1. Registration before drilling. The landowner is responsible, but the driller usually files it.
2. Fees: $600 non-refundable registration, plus a $100 deposit refunded when the completion report is filed.
3. Tract size of at least 2 acres.
4. Spacing: at least 50 ft from the nearest property line and 150 ft from any other registered well.

State rules add setbacks on top: 50 ft from a septic tank, 100 ft from a septic absorption field or spray area, and 150 ft from livestock pens, feedlots and similar sources. See water well setback requirements in Texas.

What changes on January 1, 2027

On August 27, 2026, the district adopted new rules, effective January 1, 2027:

• 5-acre minimum for property subdivided after December 31, 2026, in areas where the Trinity aquifer is 60 ft thick or less. That’s mainly the western parts of the district’s counties. Plats already in process are grandfathered.
• Wider spacing for wells producing 8–17.36 gallons per minute, a class that covers many household wells: 100 ft from property lines (up from 50) and 300 ft from other wells.
• A new class for wells over 150 gpm: 4,000 ft from other wells and 1,250 ft from property lines.
• A cap of 250,000 gallons per acre per year on commercial groundwater permits.

The district has an interactive tract-size map showing where the 5-acre rule applies. See minimum acreage for a water well.

After the well is drilled

The driller files a State Well Report with the state, and sends copies to the district and to you, within 60 days. That’s also what releases the $100 deposit. Keep your copy with the property records. Buyers, lenders and future service techs will ask for it.

Selling water or larger uses

Household and livestock wells are the common case. A well used to sell water is non-exempt. It must register as such, be metered, and pay a production fee on the water used (currently $0.24 per 1,000 gallons, per the district’s fee schedule). Operating permits for larger uses carry their own application fees.

Other county permits

A new home on acreage also needs a septic (on-site sewage facility) permit, and the septic layout drives where the well can go. Plan the well and septic sites together. Moving a drain field on paper costs nothing; moving a well after it’s drilled costs a new well.